When Carlos Collazo retired for the second time he knew it was time to give back to the community. After more than 20 years in the Air Force he retired as a Senior Master Sergeant and then had a second career as an accountant at Savannah River Site for 21 more years.

As members of St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Church, Collazo and his wife Brenda, to whom he has been married 53 years, decided to concentrate their volunteerism at the church.

“I quit playing golf because it was taking too much of my time,” said Collazo. “I wanted to do something more constructive.”

Georgia’s weather is fickle. Spring was cool and wet, and now summer is starting hot and wet. Both weather conditions provide their challenges. Gardeners must adapt to the changes in the weather.

High humidity and rainfall make a perfect environment for plant diseases, especially leaf spot. Most leaf spot in the landscape is not a real threat to the overall health of the plant, but be aware that conditions are favorable for it and be proactive.

Maintaining a green lawn in the heat of summer can be a vexing problem. However, experts agree that a lush, green lawn is still viable when care is taken.

Cutting grass too short or overwatering it can present their own sets of problems. For instance, it is advised that no more than the top third of the grass be removed when mowing it.

“By doing so, the lawn is kept cooler because less plant tissue is removed,” explains an article on the Web site yardcare.com. “In fact, cool season grass types actually benefit in the heat of the summer by setting the blade higher.”

On July 4, 1776, to recognize the momentous occasion of the independence of the newly formed union separate from the Mother Country, John and Abigail Adams consumed a celebratory meal of turtle soup. While firework displays have persisted over the centuries, the tradition of turtle soup has not. Americans ingested about 155 million hot dogs on Saturday.